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Friday, May 31, 2013

The Visitation

On so many levels, The
Visitation of Mary to Elizabeth speaks - I would even say it sings - to my life
as a cloistered heart.Mary visited Elizabeth (Luke 1:39-56) because she had
BEEN Visited by God. She did not go to Elizabeth alone - she went
with the Presence of Christ inside her.

As one living "cloistered for
Jesus" in the midst of the world, I carry Christ inside me as well. Oh,
not in the same unique way, certainly. But according to Scripture and
Church teaching, I indeed carry Him within. Mary
went on a
simple visit to Elizabeth. It was an occasion that I'm sure went
unnoticed by many. A woman went to visit her kinswoman; something that
happened all the time. No one would have cried out: "look, there goes
Mary on mission!"
or "how about that! This visit will be written of in the
Bible!" From the merely human perspective, it was simply a time of
normal interaction between two women, two
relatives. And
so it is with us. We have opportunities every single day to visit people with the presence of
Christ. In the everyday activities of life, we visit family
members, neighbors, store clerks, e-mailers, callers on the phone. I find it
extremely helpful when I make a conscious effort to visit
these persons with the love of Our Lord. That is: with an awareness of
Christ within me. I have found that it makes quite a difference in my
attitude when I think of things this way.

It is the essence, in my
estimation, of going through the world with Jesus in the "cloister of my heart."

THE CLOISTERED HEART IS a way of living for God in the midst of the world. It is heart monasticism that can be embraced by married or single persons, religious or lay. It's an analogy in which our lives can be "monasteries," our hearts can live in the "enclosure" of Christ, and all things may be viewed through the will of God as through a "grille."